COSTA MESA, CA -- The soon-to-be 35-year partnership between David Emmes and Martin Benson is the longest running and the most successful dual Artistic Directorship in American theatre. To celebrate the fruits of their shared vision and what it has meant for Orange County, Southern California and the national theatre, South Coast Repertory will overlay a number of special events and added benefits to its 1998-99 season, the theatre's 35th slate of productions.

The April issue of Subscriber, the SCR's internal magazine, lists the plays under consideration for the mainstage season. Included are Eugene O'Neill's Ah, Wilderness, directed by Benson; the West Coast premiere of Nicky Silver's The Maiden's Prayer; John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men; the world premiere of John Glore's On the Jump; Alan Ayckbourn's Bedroom Farce; Moliere's Tartuffe ; and Shakespeare's Love's Labour Lost .

A highlight of the 1998/99 season will be the publication of a new volume of SCR world premiere scripts. The Plays of South Coast Repertory will include Collected Stories by Donald Margulies, Freedomland by Amy Freed, Golden Child by David Henry Hwang, La Posada Magica by Octavio Solis, Three Days of Rain by Richard Greenburg and Wit by Margaret Edson.

There will also be a new magazine commemorating the theatre's history and past productions. Special open houses, parties and seminars will feature Emmes, Benson, SCR's founding artists and faces from past and present seasons.

The 35th season will begin in September. The April issue of Subscriber carries a caricature of Emmes and Benson by Al Hirschfeld. The original will hang in the theatre lobby during SCR's 35th season.

-- By Willard Manus
Southern California Correspondent